Isaiah 33

1 Woe to you that spoil, and you were not spoiled; and deal treacherously, and they dealt not treacherously with you! when you shall cease to spoil, you shall be spoiled; and when you shall make an end to deal treacherously, they shall deal treacherously with you.

Woe to you who plunder! Will you yourselves not also be plundered? And woe to you who despise! Will you yourselves not also be despised? When you will have completed your plundering, you will be plundered. When, out of fatigue, you will have ceased acting with contempt, you will be treated with contempt.

2 O LORD, be gracious unto us; we have waited for you: be you their arm every morning, our salvation also in the time of trouble.

O Lord, take pity on us. For we have waited for you. Be our arm in the morning and our salvation in the time of tribulation.

3 At the noise of the tumult the people fled; at the lifting up of yourself the nations were scattered.

From the voice of the Angel, the people fled. And from your exultation, the nations were scattered.

4 And your spoil shall be gathered like the gathering of the caterpillar: as the running back and forth of locusts shall he run upon them.

And your spoils will be gathered together, just as the locusts are collected when the ditches have become filled with them.

5 The LORD is exalted; for he dwells on high: he has filled Zion with judgment and righteousness.

The Lord has been magnified, because he has lived on high. He has filled Zion with judgment and justice.

6 And wisdom and knowledge shall be the stability of your times, and strength of salvation: the fear of the LORD is his treasure.

And there will be faith in your times: the riches of salvation, wisdom and knowledge. For the fear of the Lord is his treasure.

7 Behold, their valiant ones shall cry without: the ambassadors of peace shall weep bitterly.

Behold, outside, those who see will cry out. The Angels of peace will weep bitterly.

8 The highways lie waste, the travelling man ceases: he has broken the covenant, he has despised the cities, he regards no man.

The roads have become desolate. Travelers have ceased along the paths. The covenant has been nullified. He has tossed aside cities. He has disregarded men.

9 The earth mourns and languishes: Lebanon is ashamed and hewn down: Sharon is like a wilderness; and Bashan and Carmel shake off their fruits.

The earth has mourned and languished. Lebanon has been confounded and desecrated. And Sharon has become like a desert. And Bashan and Carmel have been struck together.

10 Now will I rise, says the LORD; now will I be exalted; now will I lift up myself.

“Now, I will rise up!” says the Lord. “Now I will be exalted! Now I will lift myself up!”

11 All of you shall conceive chaff, all of you shall bring forth stubble: your breath, as fire, shall devour you.

You will conceive heat. You will give birth to stubble. Your own spirit will devour you like fire.

12 And the people shall be as the burnings of lime: as thorns cut up shall they be burned in the fire.

And the people will be like the ashes from a fire. They will be consumed by fire like a bundle of thorns.

13 Hear, all of you that are far off, what I have done; and, all of you that are near, acknowledge my might.

“You who are far away, listen to what I have done! And you who are near, acknowledge my strength!”

14 The sinners in Zion are afraid; fearfulness has surprised the hypocrites. Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings?

The sinners in Zion are terrified; trembling has taken hold of the hypocrites. Who among you is able to live with a devouring fire? Who among you will live with an everlasting flame?

15 He that walks righteously, and speaks uprightly; he that despises the gain of oppressions, that shakes his hands from holding of bribes, that stops his ears from hearing of blood, and shuts his eyes from seeing evil;

The one who walks in justice and speaks the truth, who casts out avarice with oppression and shakes all bribes from his hands, who blocks his ears so that he may not listen to blood, and closes his eyes so that he may not see evil.

16 He shall dwell on high: his place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks: bread shall be given him; his waters shall be sure.

Such a one will live on high; the fortification of rocks will be his lofty place. Bread has been given to him; his waters are reliable.

17 your eyes shall see the king in his beauty: they shall behold the land that is very far off.

His eyes will see the king in his elegance; they will discern the land from far away.

18 your heart shall meditate terror. Where is the scribe? where is the receiver? where is he that counted the towers?

Your heart will meditate on fear. Where are the learned? Where are those who ponder the words of the law? Where are the teachers of little ones?

19 You shall not see a fierce people, a people of a deeper speech than you can perceive; of a stammering tongue, that you can not understand.

You will not look upon a shameless people, a people of exalted words. For you are not able to understand the dissertation of a tongue in which there is no wisdom.

20 Look upon Zion, the city of our solemnities: your eyes shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a tabernacle that shall not be taken down; not one of the stakes thereof shall ever be removed, neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken.

Look with favor upon Zion, the city of our solemnity. Your eyes will behold Jerusalem: an opulent habitation, a tabernacle that can never be taken away. Its stakes will not be taken away forever, nor will any of its cords be broken.

21 But there the glorious LORD will be unto us a place of broad rivers and streams; wherein shall go no galley with oars, neither shall gallant ship pass thereby.

For only in that place has our Lord been magnified. It is a place of rivers, very broad and open. No ship with oars will cross through it, nor will the great Greek ship pass through it.

22 For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our king; he will save us.

For the Lord is our judge. The Lord is our lawgiver. The Lord is our king. He himself will save us.

23 Your tacklings are loosed; they could not well strengthen their mast, they could not spread the sail: then is the prey of a great spoil divided; the lame take the prey.

Your ropes have become loose, and they will not prevail. Your mast will be such that you will not be able to unfurl a flag. Then the spoils of much plunder will be divided. The lame will seize the spoils.

24 And the inhabitant shall not say, I am sick: the people that dwell therein shall be forgiven their iniquity.

He who is nearby will not say: “I am too weak.” The people who live in it will have their iniquity taken away from them.